


Too Many Times

by esperink



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Character Death, Drowning, Gen, Not Really Character Death, Sympathetic Sides (Sanders Sides), i mean. he comes back
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-16 18:21:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28711155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/esperink/pseuds/esperink
Summary: Virgil wanders a bit too far off and gets in trouble.At least Sides can't die, but sometimes, Virgil wishes they could.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 31





	Too Many Times

**Author's Note:**

> stuffs: death and dying and drowning, kind of description of drowning

Roman invited the rest of the Sides to his part of the Imagination. He had decided that if Thomas was working too hard, everyone was, and that meant everyone needed a break. Even though Logan and Janus insisted they didn’t.

They’d chosen a nice spot not too far off from a lake that led to a river.

Logan had brought a book, of course, but no one bothered him as he read while lounging in the field. Janus and Patton sat nearby, chatting about something or other. The twins were chasing after each other, mostly Remus trying to scare Roman with something he’d created himself.

Virgil glanced around before deciding to go take a look at the lake and the river it led to.He kicked the water a bit, wading in. He could swim, he reminded himself. He could swim, so it wasn’t like he was going to drown or anything.

With this reassurance in mind, he started to swim. He thought he’d seen this cave earlier and wanted to get to it, to explore it. 

He relaxed there. It was nice and dark, and quiet, without any of the other Sides to bother or startle him. It was good.

Until he heard the rumbling. At first, he wasn’t sure where it was coming from. But then he heard the rocks tumbling from behind him. He turned around just in time for one of the large rocks to hit him on the head.

When he came to, he realized he was underwater. He couldn’t breathe. He was suffocating and he couldn’t do anything about it. It was like the Imagination was against him; not only was a boulder pinning him down, but a plant had wrapped around his ankle. He experimentally pulled at it and it wasn’t letting him go.

He started to panic. He was going to be stuck here, and he was going to die, and since he had wandered so far off from the others nobody was going to find him.

He tried to hold his breath, but there wasn’t much to hold. He tried to fight, to kick and flail and hopefully dislodge the boulder that pinned him down, but he could barely move. He felt sluggish. He was too desperate for a breath of air that he couldn’t stop himself from trying to breathe.

Water filled Virgil’s lungs and he blacked out.

Depending on how a Side dies, it doesn’t generally take very long for them to live again. As long as the Side was in one piece, it takes a little as an hour or two for a Side to come back.

So Virgil didn’t get much relief from drowning.

He scrabbled at the boulder, at the ground, at the plant that had wrapped itself even tighter around his ankle in his struggle. Everything hurt. His lungs burned from lack of air. He clawed at his throat. He couldn’t even scream.

He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t think. All he could do was panic. All he could do was watch as his vision blurred and darkened.

By the third time, he was already begging whatever god there was to let him stay dead.

Remus was holding something out, chasing after Roman with it, when he suddenly stilled. He cocked his head, like he was listening for something. 

“Remus?” Roman asked.

Remus opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but then he darted away. Roman stared after him, confused and speechless. Janus excused himself from his conversation with Patton and went after Remus. Roman followed, and then Patton, and then, Logan, noticing everyone following, did as well.

“What’s going on?” Janus asked Remus.

“Virgil,” is all Remus said, as he darted towards the lake. He peered into it. He cocked his head again, turning and glancing around.

“Virgil?” Janus asked, now sounding concerned.

“He’s in trouble!” Remus ran off, into the lake. The others followed him. They started looking for Virgil. They didn’t want to think of what him being in trouble might mean, but they all had an idea.

They spent two hours looking for the anxious Side, but they couldn’t find him in the lake or the river. It wasn’t until they found a cave that Remus and Janus had hope that they’d find him. 

“In here,” Janus called, noting the rocks and boulders near the water. It looked like they had fallen. He removed his cloak and hat, but Remus had already dived in, not bothering with his clothing.

“He’s here!” Remus said when he resurfaced. He went back under.

When Virgil came to this time, he could see Remus through his fluctuating vision. Remus was trying to remove the boulder. He shoved at it, pushed, kicked it, but it wouldn’t budge. Any hope that Virgil had faded with his vision.

Remus went back up to the surface. “He’s stuck under a boulder. I can’t do this alone.” He’d usually hate to admit that, but with Virgil in danger he didn’t care. 

With Roman’s and Janus’ help, he went back under and removed the boulder. He started to bring Virgil back up, but the plant was still wrapped around Virgil’s ankle. Remus bit at the vine, tearing it so that he could bring Virgil to the surface.

Virgil wasn’t moving when Remus placed him on the dry ground. He wasn’t breathing. Logan checked his pulse.

“Is… is he..,” Patton said, voice catching.

Logan nodded wordlessly.

“He comes back,” Remus said, more to himself.

“What?” Roman asked.

“We don’t die permanently, not unless we wish to,” Janus explained. 

“And- and how do you two know this?” Roman demanded. He didn’t get an answer.

It only took an hour and a half for Virgil to start coughing up water. Everyone jumped up, starting to gather around him but refraining when Remus and Janus frowned at them.

Virgil gagged and spit up water, so much water. He laid back down, gasping but still breathing.

“Hey VeeVee,” Remus said, patting Virgil’s cheeks to keep him awake. “How many?”

Virgil held up a hand; five. Then he answered verbally, voice hoarse: “Or six, if you count when you came to get me.”

The Light Sides blanched, even Logan.

“That’s a new record!” Remus said brightly.

The chipperness of the other Side’s voice startled a laugh out of Virgil. “I guess so,” he replied. He held a hand out and Remus helped him up. “Thanks for coming to get me.”

The other Sides were apologizing for not realizing he was in trouble sooner, but he waved the apologies away.

“Just get me out of here,” Virgil said.

**Author's Note:**

> come yell at me on tumblr: esperinkdraws


End file.
